Cleveland, in Northeast Ohio, is the 40th cloudiest city in the United States. (And seventeen of those 40 are located in Alaska.) Yes, the Great Lakes produce a lot of moisture – and a lot of clouds. Somewhere around the middle of November I realize I’m in for a long stretch of sunless skies.

Thankfully, I am lucky enough to surround myself with beautiful colors and beautiful fibers at http://www.contemporarycloth.com/. These metallic beauties caught my eye.

With two teenage daughters in the house, anything pink and green is always welcome and these vibrant colors were a welcome counterpoint to the never ending grey skies.

Since a woman can never have too many bags, I set out to make a simple tote and selected a Butterick pattern.

The pattern was fairly simple to follow. It required craft weight, sew-in interfacing. An inside pocket was sewn to the lining.

It was not long after I began this project that I was surprised to see blue skies and sunshine. We were thrilled to have several clear days in a row, although accompanied by sub-freezing, arctic air.

The result?

and

“Miss Green”